


Toddler Tales - Upon Reflection

by Sister of Silence (Orcbait)



Series: An Age of Heroes [2]
Category: Warhammer 40.000
Genre: Angst, Cute, Foreshadowing, Gen, Toddlers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-22
Updated: 2015-08-22
Packaged: 2018-04-16 15:38:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4630707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orcbait/pseuds/Sister%20of%20Silence
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Chief Companion Vendatha falls mysteriously ill, Primarch Sanguinius takes it upon himself to look after toddler Arlette. However, as a low-key psyker himself Sanguinius quickly begins to notice not all is as it seems around the harmless looking child.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Toddler Tales - Upon Reflection

**Author's Note:**

> Set really early in the Crusade Era, this is the same timeline as teen!Horus being found and raised by the Emperor. Arlette is still an adorable toddler here.

Horus is very sorry, Arlette,” Sanguinius assured the crying toddler while giving Horus, who had opened his mouth to rebuke, a quelling look. “He shouldn’t have frightened you like that.” Horus resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The little brat was such a drama queen. She stared balefully at him from behind Sanguinius’ brown bicep.

  
“I’ll be at the Atrium,” Horus said, his hand on the door.

  
“Horus,” Sanguinius replied, motioning with a wing at the toddler curled up in his arms. He’d be the first to agree she was spoiled but she was also a child. He was disappointed with Horus, who should have known better than to act the way he had. Horus scowled, his jaw working, but he said nothing as he turned and stalked out of Sanguinius’ quarters. Sanguinius sighed as Arlette started to sob again. “There, there,” he soothed, lightly rubbing her small back with his large hand. “Shall we go and see if we can find the Emperor?”

  
The toddler nodded against his chest, her bottom lip trembling as she clutched her plushie in her tiny arms.

  
“All right, I’ll have to get dressed then,” Sanguinius said as he stroke a strand of dark hair out of her small brown face. “I can’t very well appear before the Emperor in my underwear, can I?” She giggled at that and Sanguinius was happy to hear it after the tears.  “Go on,” he added as he helped her off his lap and onto the bed. “I can’t get dressed with you sitting on me.” She shook her head in agreement, dark hair bouncing, and smiled up at him as he mused it up.

  
Sanguinius rose and strode to his wardrobe, browsing for a moment before taking out crimson robes. In manner and appearance Arlette often reminded him of the children he’d grown up with on Baal Secundus. Sanguinius realized it was in part why he was upset with Horus his behavior, for he knew what it was like to be bullied by someone you can’t defend against. He glanced over his shoulder as he shrugged the robes on and frowned when he saw Arlette standing in front of the large mirror on the other side of his quarters. How had she gotten there so fast?  He shook his head as he adjusted the robes around his wings. He hadn’t thought himself one to underestimate children, but it seemed he had. He smiled. The toddler looked as if she could barely stand on her own, never mind walk. Clearly she was plenty capable of both. He tucked a feather straight. Looks could be deceiving, he knew what that was like, too.

  
“Arlette,” Sanguinius started as he finished adjusting his robes. “Let’s-” he stopped abruptly. He’d seen something as he turned towards her, out of the corner of his eyes. For an instant, he could have sworn the toddler wasn’t alone - that there was someone standing beside her, on the other side of the mirror. Someone too tall to be the little girl’s reflection. Goosebumps rose on Sanguinius’ skin and he shook his feathers. A trick of the light, surely? And yet he was certain he’d seen someone. A man: tall, thin, with long dark hair and a disheveled look about him. Sanguinius turned to look behind himself, half expecting to find Conrad standing by his desk. However, the other Primarch wasn’t there. There was no one standing beside Sanguinius’ desk  to be reflected in the mirror just so.

  
“Sanwiwiwus?”

  
Sanguinius all but jumped out of his skin.

  
Arlette looked up at the ruffled Primarch, her expression curious. “Are you OK uncle Sansan?” she inquired as she took hold of his wide sleeve.

  
“Yes, yes, I am fine,” Sanguinius managed as he quieted his pounding heart. “I just didn’t see you there,” he forced a smile onto his face. “Shall we go?”

  
The toddler smiled broadly in turn and reached her little arms up to him. “Fly?” she asked as he picked her up. “Yes? Pwease?”

  
“You’ll have to hold on very tight,” Sanguinius said as he glanced at the mirror. It was empty, of course. He gave it a wide breadth anyway.  He tried to tell himself he’d imagined it - fatigue could cause your sight to play tricks on you - but Sanguinius knew very well he wasn’t wont to imagining things and he wasn’t tired in the slightest. Perhaps it had been the Emperor, checking in on the girl after Horus’ prank? The distorted impression could simply be the effect of Sanguinius’ brief glance. Hadn’t Magnus once said the crystalline structure of mirrors made them perfect conduits for astral projection? Surely the Emperor knew this, too. Sanguinius put his arm around the toddler as he took off with strong beats of his wings. There was certainly no doubt in his mind that the Emperor had a sixth sense for the toddler’s distress. In fact, he’d been surprised His Imperial Highness hadn’t shown up to intervene the moment Horus had responded to the child’s prank in kind.  Or perhaps He had? It would certainly explain her dash to the mirror and cheering up so swiftly.

  
Sanguinius zigzagged around the marble pillars and up among the rafters as he searched for the Emperor, much to the toddler’s delight. Sanguinius smiled when the little girl squealed with joy as he dove towards the tiled floor, rolling into a sharp turn at the very last moment. “Faster! Faster!” she cried in her baby voice as Sanguinius ascended again. They found the Emperor in the grand library, reading a book on the third floor overhang.

  
“Empwah!” the toddler shouted at the top of her tiny lungs as Sanguinius swooped down.

  
\+ _Hello little one, good afternoon son_ \+ His voice echoed in their thoughts. Arlette chirped happily and hugged herself, expressing in her childish way the comfort of the psychic touch Sanguinius felt too.

  
Sanguinius landed neatly beside the Emperor, one sandal-clad foot touching the parquetry after the other. He leaned down in one smooth motion and handed Him the toddler, who flung herself from the Angel’s arms to plummet into His embrace. She hugged the Emperor tightly, then spotted the silvered box of rāḥat al-ḥulqūm standing next to His tea.

  
\+ _All right, just this once_ \+ the Emperor smiled and put her on the ground. His tea cup rose up in the air to float into the safety of His hand as the toddler tipped the glass and cast-iron end table when grabbing the fringe of its red cloth while she reached for the delicate box. The cloth slipped and she fell backwards on her bum, the silvered box hitting the ground in a cloud of sugar dust. Miraculously, the end table reverted it’s momentum and tipped back to stand on it’s three feet. + Well, that was to be expected + the Emperor observed, stirring His tea without quite touching the spoon.

  
Arlette looked from the red cloth clutched in her little fist up at the adults as if about to cry, though when she saw neither of them seemed upset her bottom lip stopped trembling. A wide grin appeared on her baby features as she reached with both hands for the dented box of sweets.

  
\+ _Did she wear you out already?_ \+ the Emperor inquired, His tone concerned. + _I can arrange for one of the Companions to look after her while Vendatha is ill_ +

“No, no, it’s quite all right, I honestly miss being around children,” Sanguinius replied as he watched the toddler stuff herself with the specially prepared delicacy.

The Emperor gave him a curious look but didn’t comment upon it. + _All went well then?_ \+ He asked instead as He too looked at the girl, who was already nose to ears and fingers to elbows covered in the sticky snacks’ residue.

  
“There was a little thing with Horus acting like he himself is still a complete child,” Sanguinius answered as he watched the girl climb onto the Emperor’s lap and share a fistful of smushed candy. “But I imagine you know of that already, though I can’t say I was aware you used mirror projection to keep an eye on her.”

  
\+ _I do not?_ \+ the Emperor returned as He let the child put the glob of candy in His mouth . + _However, that is an excellent idea, did Magnus tell you that?_ +

Sanguinius smile died on his lips at the Emperor’s denial. “Yes,” he answered mechanically. “Yes, he did.”  
  


**Author's Note:**

> A lot of time and hard work went into the creation and publication of this story and as such it is very dear to me. I would love to hear what you thought of it! If you decide to share my story, please credit and link back to me. Thank you!


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